Favoritism

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Deabrua

Juvie Member
Beardie name(s)
Dezzy is 5yo 18" F, Percy is 8yo 19" M
Ever since I got my first bearded dragon, Ive been planning on having more lizards whether its more bearded dragon or some other reptile. The more I think about it though, would there end up being an issue with favoritism? With, for example, cats they mostly come to you. If you have multiple, the interaction with each occurs when they come to you.

With multiple same/diff lizards, would it just be a matter of setting aside X amount of time with each? Or possibly getting ones that require/prefer less handling time?

How do yall handle that?

Note: regardless of this, every animal in my house gets no less than the care needed to remain in good/great health. Im just wondering about things like if people end up having "oh i prefer <insert fav lizard owned> being out with me"
 

Ellentomologist

Hatchling Member
Hiya,

Generally, reptiles are considered solitary animals. They're not considered to be an animal that gets "lonely" and many don't even like handling/interaction. You only *need* to handle your animal often enough for it to be hand-tame, for your safety and the animal's safety, and often enough to perform health checks and cleanings. Beyond that, the vast majority of reptiles aren't going to mind any favoritism provided their terrariums are adequate and they have some form of enrichment.

If you're particularly concerned about it though, you certainly can aim to get animals that seem to benefit less from interaction than others. Most arboreal geckos, for instance, loathe to be taken out of their terrariums - this ranges from Crested Geckos who are usually like "Oh, you're taking me out? -_- Ok..." to Tokay Geckos who are very well known for their strong bites and loud barks of protest. Snakes would be my main rec, though, as most of you're popular pet species are minimally stressed by handling but are also completely content to stay in their cages.

In my experience, terrestrial lizards like Bearded Dragons tend to be the most interested interaction or at least getting out of their cages.

Best,
-Ellen
 

HippieLizards

Gray-bearded Member
Beardie name(s)
Daisy, Loki, Rocket, Phoenix, Mulder & Scully. Non beardie pets: Stan (Leo) Cayde (Hognose) Tillery (cat)
'Ello,

Having five of these little guys myself, I can say that once you work out a routine it's actually rather easy to make sure everyone is handled for a bit each day.

Usually I start with whatever dragon was held and out and about the least yesterday, and go down by that, usually Phoenix gets the least handling just because she's still super flighty and easily stressed by handling. Same with the geckos.

I try not to pick favorites but still that isn't the easiest thing to do, I love them all but there are some in my crew that are much better with handling then others. I just try to make sure everyone each day gets to stretch their legs.

But If you get another dragon and only have 2-3 then it will most definitely be much easier for you I'm betting. Same rules might apply but it depends. That's just what works for me the best so far.
 

DorgEndo

Sub-Adult Member
Photo Comp Winner
Beardie name(s)
Devlyn
IMO that favoritism isn't necessarily a bad thing. There are different types of favoritism, too many to list fully. The human should put the animal's needs first. As long as that is done, in theory things should be fine for the animal and human. Some animals need more attention because of what species they are or their own personality. A human can have their favorite animal simply because they enjoy the time spent with that creature the best over their other creatures, nothing wrong with that. Some people do play favorites with everything, where they don't put in time or thought, that can be unfair from neglect, to the opposite of over-stimulation directed at the favorite creature.

Also, like you said, some animals like cats can communicate who their favorite person is in an understandable way that any human can understand. Other critters can also communicate who they trust or something similar, but it is up to the human to learn that language.

Personally I have not had that many pets as an adult. Growing up my parents got me lots of pets. Too many pets. They got me animals which were not my favorites at all, some definitely got the minimum care. I had gerbils, I never wanted gerbils. My parents kept buying gerbils til I had 4, even kid me knew that was too many gerbils in the cage they had so I made my parents get a second cage to split them up 2 each based on who seemed to get along with who. Gerbils lives for years and during one year they all started to pass almost in same order they got bought. When one was left that last gerbil did not want anything to do with humans, it hadn't been handled, it was alone and just seemed to hate everyone and everything after it's buddy passed.

I feel bad for that still. I am sure now I could have more pets than I do, but I would rather go super slow. I'm also thinking of how if I want multiple pets most have to be low maintenance, need less people time so there are only a handful who need people time. Some exotic insects would be fun, and also don't have a need to socialize or need human attention, they need a home with food and shelter and space to move around. My cat Greysie gets most of my time, she doesn't need a cat friend, I am her favorite human, I accept a lot of responsibility to give her a happy healthy life far above the minimum.
 

MrSpectrum

Gray-bearded Member
Ellentomologist":yw91rmnk said:
Generally, reptiles are considered solitary animals. They're not considered to be an animal that gets "lonely" and many don't even like handling/interaction. You only *need* to handle your animal often enough for it to be hand-tame, for your safety and the animal's safety, and often enough to perform health checks and cleanings. Beyond that, the vast majority of reptiles aren't going to mind any favoritism provided their terrariums are adequate and they have some form of enrichment.
+1 (That's a big ol' plus 1/agreement)

In my experience, terrestrial lizards like Bearded Dragons tend to be the most interested interaction or at least getting out of their cages.
Agree. BDs are very unusual in this and some other respects (e.g. the ability to learn by imitation).
These traits (are among those that) make them the one of the most popular pet lizards in the world. Yet they're still not going to get jealous.

Behaviors that some pet owners believe are jealousy are more likely expressions of territoriality or dominance. To avoid such displays, just make sure you keep multiple pet lizards out of sight of each other (as you would prevent them seeing their reflections in enclosure glass).
 

Deabrua

Juvie Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Dezzy is 5yo 18" F, Percy is 8yo 19" M
I was looking at either getting a second bearded dragon, a crested gecko, or leopard gecko. But eventually, once FAR more experienced with lizards, I wanted to look at Argus Monitors.

Anyways, I know my current bearded dragon loves being outside her tank, so she usually gets supervised roaming time till she decides to sit by her tank like "lemme in lemme in" or she'll simply sit with me at my PC/TV/etc.

I probably want to look for something that's fine with being held (ie doesnt get stressed) but doesnt require constant handling (regular handling is fine, just not constant) since my attention would then be split between the two
 

MrSpectrum

Gray-bearded Member
Deabrua":17jfbvua said:
I probably want to look for something that's fine with being held (ie doesnt get stressed) but doesnt require constant handling (regular handling is fine, just not constant) since my attention would then be split between the two
I wouldn't say (as a rule--there are always individuals & outliers) that BDs require constant handling, but AFAIK (form researching about 3 dozen different lizards) they're the most accepting of handing; other lizards, like geckos (except for Tokays) tolerate handling (same caveat about individuals & outliers).

There are a LOT of great lizard species worth investigating; there may be others that will fit your criteria. I wouldn't worry about splitting your attention between two or more, as has been discussed already in this thread.

I haven't looked into monitors too closely except for Ackies monitors (about the same size as a BD).
Argus monitors (with a length up to 5 feet) are IMO in a whole different class (min enclosure size 8' x 4' x 4', and ideally 10'-15' x 5' x 5'). Much more expensive in every respect, and do not appreciate being handled/held at all.

Reptiles Magazine says, "Argus monitors are challenging lizards for expert reptile keepers." (emphasis mine). Not to dissuade you--just a suggestion to do a lot of homework--these guys can be a lifetime (up to 20 years) commitment. If you're that committed, I'd suggest starting (somewhere along the way) with one of the smaller monitor species. YMMV.
 

Deabrua

Juvie Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Dezzy is 5yo 18" F, Percy is 8yo 19" M
Yup, like I said that wouldn't be until I became far more experienced with reptiles. I would intend on searching for a female which remains a bit smaller than males too. Even then, given their size and nature I wouldnt expect them to deal with much less like/want handling.

For smaller monitors, there's the kings and ackies. Kings are even smaller than ackies but... not easy to find and not cheap in any way shape or form.

Also if anyone has suggestions for other easy to keep lizards (not sneks as much as I love them, I cant bring myself to feed mice), that'd be great. Current considerations were just crested/leopard gecko or a second beardy.
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Deabrua":3cf8o1u7 said:
Also if anyone has suggestions for other easy to keep lizards
My vote is always for a Uromastyx when someone asks :)
Similar care requirements to beardies (just hotter basking temps really)

-Brandon
 

Deabrua

Juvie Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Dezzy is 5yo 18" F, Percy is 8yo 19" M
Hotter basking temps is one major thing Im having issue with as it is lol... The last 80w bulb I used only hit 97F and I cant recall the wattage of the bulb currently in use hitting 103F

Also want to point out that I wasnt implying beardies need constant handling xP
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
You just have to play around with wattages and different bulb types.

For my Uro Calcifer, I think I was using a 125w flood lamp which got her basking temp to around 130~

-Brandon
 

MrSpectrum

Gray-bearded Member
I like Uros too--I'm a sucker for those armored tails.

I'm also looking seriously at a chameleon (panther or veiled) as an "intermediate" lizard. Almost totally opposite of beardies (jungle habitat, but room temp for the most part) upright enclosure (smaller footprint)... I've always thought they were cool since I first saw one in a nature film in grammar school.

Any of the various Anoles or False Chameleons are nice too.
 

Deabrua

Juvie Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Dezzy is 5yo 18" F, Percy is 8yo 19" M
The breeder that i got my bearded dragon through had chameleons as well, I dont think he was selling them though. Anyways, I got to hold them for awhile. Neat little things.

Ive used bulbs ranging from 50-100w "reptile basking bulbs" to 60-80w halogen flood. The 60w halogen worked when the tank was in a different room, hitting temps of 105-110. In current room, it only hit maybe 80F and house temp is generally 71-74. I went to the 80w halogen as the next step up and it was getting close to 100F but not over and my beardy is still barely 1yo.

Speaking of armored tails, I havent ever looked into them so Im not sure if they're even domesticated yet but... armadillo lizards?
 

MrSpectrum

Gray-bearded Member
Deabrua":1u1db8gv said:
Speaking of armored tails, I havent ever looked into them so Im not sure if they're even domesticated yet but... armadillo lizards?
The smaller ones (there are several species) are being CB (not sure I'd call them "domesticated"); Clint's Reptiles has a video on them.

Unfortunately for us, but fortunate for them, the Sungazer is highly illegal to export, and I'd be highly cautious/skeptical of anyone offering one for sale--caveat emptor. While I'd love one, I'm content to appreciate them on nature videos.

Expect a premium price--even on the smaller species.
 

Deabrua

Juvie Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Dezzy is 5yo 18" F, Percy is 8yo 19" M
I've never heard of sungazers, also what's CB?
 
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